WesTech Municipal Water/Wastewater Blog

Thousands of water and wastewater treatment facilities use granular media filters. An operational control system ­– along with media configuration, underdrain system, and backwash process – is an important consideration because it determines how water flow is controlled through the filter.

Four basic types of operational control systems are used in gravity filtration, with some variances from plant to plant. Each has advantages and disadvantages.

The Town of Peru’s early 90s era water treatment plant began facing difficulties meeting new water treatment regulations, causing the town to invest $3 million in water system upgrades to improve the overall quality of the water and help meet the regulations. The investment included improvements in storage tower mixing systems, reservoir dredging, and treatment plant upgrades. All aspects of the improvements relate to reducing organics that lead to the creation of disinfection byproducts such as THMs and HAA5s.

As plants are installed further north, water treatment performance can be affected by the elements, such as colder weather conditions, wind blowing across the water source, and formation of organics.

The Northern Village of Ile a La Crosse, Saskatchewan, operates a surface water treatment plant for their drinking water supply. The existing facility, which serves 1,600 residential and commercial businesses, was at design capacity, and thus was having difficulty keeping up with demand. Further, the water treatment plant was struggling to meet regulatory requirements.

When the City of Bloomfield, N.M., was notified by the New Mexico Environmental Department that it had 18 months to bring its drinking water treatment plant into compliance with the Interim Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (IESWTR), they needed a fast, innovative solution.